All On My Own
by sourulfur
Summary: Authenticity, a well known restaurant in town, is known for the Family Wall; which is a wall of photos that depicts important people in the family-of-choice that is Stiles Stilinski's. His family might be broken, but it is his own and he is quite proud of it. After meeting Derek Hale, his daughter's teacher, Stiles may just find himself with a full wall of faces.
1. Chapter 1

"_This is my family.  
>I found it, all on my own.<br>Is little, and broken, but still good.  
>Yeah, still good.<em>"

-_ Stitch, __**Lilo & Stitch**_

* * *

><p>There was a wall; but, not just any wall. It was painted a warm, soft white color that glowed yellow when the sun hit it just right. It filled the room of the little, family owned restaurant that featured it with a homey sense that just added to the atmosphere. On that wall were several photo frames, always holding room for one more. The photos ranged from serious to silly to just breathtakingly beautiful. The frames were different styles, not all of them matching any set theme and held the pictures of the owners' family, both living and deceased. His favorite photo, he had to admit, was toward the lower right in the group of photos.<p>

There, surrounded by a white mat and a black frame, sat a photo of his mother smiling in her wedding dress. Whenever he felt lost, unsure of what to do next, he looked to that photo and he could hear his mother's final words to him, words of encouragement that no longer made him cry but made him smile. That morning, like many before them, began with the sounds of his morning line cooks doing the prep work in the kitchen while he sat at one of the tables in the dining room that was bathed in early morning sunlight as he went over the books. Erica hummed softly to herself as she wiped down the bar on the far side of the room that only served mimosas that early in the day.

"Stiles" Stilinski had been the owner and head chef of _Authenticity_ for the previous five years. The restaurant was one that was known for making _authentic_ food from several different cultures, the cultures of Stiles himself, and those friends that have become like his family. It should not have worked, the hodgepodge of flavors, but somehow, the atmosphere and the union of heritages seemed to draw in a decent enough crowd to do more than just skate by.

"Daddy!" called a tall, blonde girl no older than eight or nine years old (she was turning nine in April, _thank you very much_) as she came rushing out of the staff room at the end of the hall to the right.

Just the sound of her voice made Stiles look up with a bright smile on his face, and he set his pen down on top of his paperwork. "Hey, Princess," he stated as he watched his daughter come skidding to a stop next to the table he occupied. "Your hair looks lovely all braided up like that. Did Aunt Allison help you?"

The young girl nodded a few times, giving her dad a bright smile as she twisted slightly from side to side with her feet planted firmly on the ground, giving sign of just how much she was excited for her first day back to school. "She did! She also said that I should have time for some french toast for breakfast. Can I have some daddy, Please?" she asked in the rapid speed that she, along with Stiles, was known to possess.

Stiles chuckled and nodded as he stood up before dropping a kiss to the top of her head. He then gathered all the books and said, "Can you take these back to the office, sweetheart? Then, I'll start your breakfast while Erica opens us up."

"Yay!" The eight-year old smiled brightly as she gathered the books and papers before she carefully took them back to the office at the far end of the hallway she had came from earlier. She made absolutely sure that she did not drop a single piece of paper, knowing that they were very important without knowing what they were about. Grown up stuff, she guessed, as she shut the office door behind her when she left to return to the dining room.

When she got back, there were a few regular customers already sitting down at different tables. "Hello, Karolina," Mrs. Baker, one of the elderly women who came in every morning for coffee and the pancake breakfast, said with a warm smile as Stiles' daughter passed their table.

"Good morning." Karolina spoke with a bright smile, one that only seemed to grow when she noticed a very familiar man in a police uniform come walking past the front windows toward the door. "Grandpa!" She all but shouted before running over to catch the man around the waist with a hug, making "John" Stilinski chuckle as he rubbed her back.

He was quite proud of the little girl next to him and never tired of seeing her, or his son for that matter. "Morning, Kaja," he replied with a chuckle before letting her lead him to the table that had her backpack already sitting on one of the empty chairs. John nodded with a smile at Erica when she looked in his direction before the blonde young woman disappeared into the back, no doubt taking the cooks some orders and letting Stiles know that his father was there.

John listened with a soft smile as his granddaughter spoke all about how she was so excited for her first day of fourth grade, that she could not _wait _to see who her teacher was, and she really hoped that she got to sit next to some boy named Cole because he had the _best _crayons and loved to share with his neighbors. All the while, the soft hustle and bustle of Isaac and Erica taking orders and chatting with the early morning regulars dinned in the background as it did most mornings until suddenly there were two plates being sat down on the table (John noted that his own was devoid of the well cooked bacon that sat waiting on Karolina's plate), along with some chocolate milk for his granddaughter and a cup of coffee for himself. "Mornin', Pops," Stiles said with a cheeky grin which only then caused John to narrow his eyes at his son at the lack of what _made_ the breakfast the best. "Oh, don't give me that look. You heard Melissa, less of the fatty stuff."

"Yeah, yeah," John grumbled as he stabbed at the pancakes on his plate (devoid of syrup though there was butter so he guessed he could take the compromise).

Only once the orders were delivered and the other patrons checked upon did Isaac, Erica, and Stiles join John and Karolina at the table. They all talked, conversations overlapping each other, but each one had a smile on their face and John; well, John could not help but lean back in his seat slightly and marvel at the small slice of the family that they had created throughout the years.

* * *

><p>"Daddy, we're going to be late!" Karolina said as she tugged on her dad's hand to lead him down the hallway. Her teacher that year was new to the school, from what Stiles understood he had taught for a couple years in Los Angeles before transferring to Beacon Hills, and he had requested a chance to meet all his students' parents, if possible, that morning.<p>

From the sounds coming through the doorway that Karolina was leading him to, Stiles could only assume they were not going to be the first ones there. "We're still ten minutes early, Kaja," chuckled Stiles, not missing the smile that his daughter flashed his direction. It was one he knew well from experience, one that read that she was well aware of that but she was impatient and did not care about others sense of time. To _her_, they were late.

The two of them walked into the classroom that was labeled as being _Mr. Hale's Fourth Grade_ and Stiles paused near the doorway when Karolina stopped just inside the doors. There were all kinds of different posters along the walls with a blank cork board that stretched the entire right wall that was only marked by some cut out letters reading that the wall was going to be an art wall. There were cubbies at the back of the room for students to put their things in, along with a row of hooks for coats and a small rack above it for hats and things. There seemed to be a reading corner near the front of the room, and in the back corner was a bookcase of board games labeled as indoor recess activities.

"Hi," came a voice to Stiles' right, pulling the young man's attention to where _the most gorgeous man he had __**ever**__seen_ was walking toward him from the front of the room. Were jeans that form fitting even _allowed_ for teachers? Stiles had to practically force himself to keep his eyes upward so that he was not _obviously_ staring. The man held a hand out toward Stiles when he came to a stop a few feet away from the two. "I'm Mr. Hale, Derek."

"Stiles... Stilinski," he offered before taking the man's hand in his own. He gave a quick shake before he pulled his hand back, smiling as he gently squeezed Karolina's shoulder, who seemed to be frozen and pulling in on herself as her nervousness started to overpower her excitement as it seemed to happen every year.

Derek smiled at the introduction and nodded a little before he let his gaze fall to his quiet student who shifted her backpack on her shoulders. "Stilinski... that must make you Karolina," Derek said, smiling once again in a way that made his eyes crinkle at the corners. Stiles nearly swore under his breath at how _unfair_ it was that a man that attractive could even exist in the first place. "I'm glad to have you here. Everyone's starting on a project for me if you'd like to go find your desk and start. It's all about your favorite things, and later I'll tell you some of mine, okay?" Karolina seemed to hesitate for a moment, but she gave a slight nod, still having not found her voice quite yet. Derek then pointed to the cubbies at the back of the room as he said, "Once you get your stuff unpacked at your desk, you can go back there and pick one out for your things. That will be yours for the year."

Karolina did smile a little more at that as she nodded slightly and said, "Thank you."

She then gave her dad a quick hug good-bye before she went to go find the desk with her name on a sticker sitting at the top right corner of the top. "She's shy," Stiles explained as she found her desk and started to unpack her things. "At first, anyway. She's usually a big bundle of energy but with new people it's touch and go until she gets comfortable, y'know?"

Derek chuckled softly once again and gave Stiles one of those eye-crinkle smiles that nearly made the restaurant owner want to punch him in the face because _unfair_. "I know what that's like. I was the same as a kid, really. It wasn't easy to get me to open up, but I've learned," he replied with a slight shrug. Then, Derek handed Stiles a small packet of papers that he had given to all the parents or guardians that had come in already. "There's my contact information, if you need it, as well as some ideas I've got for field trips and activities and such. I'd like to hear what the parents think of the ideas before getting the okay from the school. There's also the normal school lunch, insurance, computer usage agreement, and other forms like that we need turned in over the next few days." Stiles nodded absentmindedly as he flipped through the papers, nearly grumbling at the fact that now he had even _more _paperwork to do. He should have expected it, though; it was his homework every year, after all. "Will you be picking Karolina up or does she ride the bus?"

"Oh, I will today; but, we've got a list of acceptable people to pick her up in the office. Sometimes I get too busy at work to come so there's a few others who willingly take the job." Stiles smiled slightly at the memory of Erica all but jumping at the chance the first time Stiles had asked her to go pick up Karolina from school. Derek nodded at the information as he crossed his arms over his chest, glancing over at the students who were filling in the paper that was on their desks, including Karolina, who was concentrating so hard that her tongue was poking out of her mouth slightly on one side. "She's got a really bad allergy to nuts and blueberries, for the record. Last time I didn't actually warn the teacher, she gave everyone something with peanuts in it and... well, _that_ was an experience I would rather not happen again."

The teacher's lips pursed slightly at Stiles' information, finding it just sad that a teacher would not check on something like that. Derek, himself, had already checked over his students' known allergies from the list in the office because he felt like it was the responsible thing to do. After all, if _he_ had a kid in school, he would like the teacher to be prepared for those things. Still, it was kind of nice that Stiles took the initiative to tell him, too; it showed Derek that the young man worried and cared about his daughter. At least, Derek assumed it was his daughter, even though he looked really young to have a eight-year old. Derek nearly had to bite his lip to keep from asking inappropriate questions. "Thank you for letting me know, Stiles, and thanks for coming in. I'd like to know the parents a bit, y'know, faces to names and things like that. Plus, I figure people would like to know the new guy that the school was putting their kids with."

Stiles nodded a little, absently wetting his lips and smiling as he watched Karolina before he looked back to his daughter's teacher. "No, yeah, this was nice. Good idea on your part, Mr. Hale."

"Derek," the man corrected with another one of those smiles that Stiles nearly grumbled at, because as he had already thought several times before, _unfair_.

"Derek," said Stiles, correcting himself with a slight smile. He then gestured toward the door with the packet of papers, taking a step in that direction as he said, "I should probably head to work and let you get to interacting with the kids. It was nice to meet you."

The fourth grade teacher nodded as he said, "See you around, Stiles," before his attention was drawn to a new student and her parents as they came in. The new student seemed even more reluctant than Karolina had been.

Derek put his attention on them, though a part of him watched as Stiles went over to say good-bye to Karolina quickly, who smiled brightly up at her father before he planted a kiss to the top of her head and then left the classroom.

* * *

><p>"And, Mr. Hale said that we're going to do a science fair this year!" Karolina said excitedly from her place at the kitchen table in the apartment that she and Stiles called home. It was fairly small, but there was a large yard behind the building for all the kids to play in, and that was why Stiles had chosen the place when he could finally afford to move out from his dad's house, which was only a few blocks away.<p>

Stiles smiled at his daughter's excitement as he worked on cooking their dinner over the stove that was situated in the island in the middle of the kitchen. "Oh really? Any ideas what you want to do yet?" Stiles asked, stirring the browning hamburger in the skillet.

Karolina shook her head a few times, shifting in her seat as she idly swung her legs underneath her. "Nuh-uh, but we have a long while until then," Karolina replied with a resolute nod.

The rest of their evening was filled with Karolina working on her homework (it was a take home quiz to go over things they had learned the year before, just a quick refresher thing to get their minds back on track), and then watching a couple episodes of SpongeBob before Karolina took a shower and then went to bed. Stiles braided her blonde hair before bed so that tomorrow she could have pretty waves, like Lydia ("Miss Martin at school, remember?" "I know, Daddy."). Once Karolina was in bed, Stiles did the paperwork that he would have to return to the school the following day and used the evening off to catch up on his much-needed sleep. As he slowly drifted off, Stiles could not help but to think back on how Derek's eyes would light up and would crinkle at the corners when he smiled. It was such a nice smile, and the man had a great personality to boot. Of course, the first person in _ages_ that Stiles felt any attraction to would be his daughter's teacher, a fact that reminded him several times over that he needed to quickly stamp out that attraction because he was not going to be _that parent_. Besides, Derek... _Mr. Hale_ was probably married. Right?


	2. Chapter 2

"Where are you off to?" Derek asked with a slightly raised brow as he finished cleaning the dishes in the sink, setting them into the strainer next to it. He glanced over to where his older sister and roommate, Laura, was tugging on her favored leather jacket.

Laura smirked as she tugged the strands of her hair out from under the collar of her jacket. She spoke as she quickly tied the length of her hair into a braid that hung over her right shoulder, tying it in place with a rubber band. "Dinner with Lydia's family," she answered. Once her hair was finished, she crossed her arms over her chest and studied her two years younger brother for a moment. "You should come with me."

Derek laughed awkwardly with a shake of his head as he crossed the room to the fridge to grab himself a beer. Spending his Sunday night with his sister's girlfriend's family did not exactly seem like a good time to him. "Nah, I think I'll stay here." Derek leaned against the kitchen island as he opened the beer bottle, setting aside the cap before taking a sip. "Have fun, though."

"They're going to have that pie you loved so much from Christmas last year."

Laura smirked again, and it made Derek's eyes narrow slightly as he studied his sister. After a moment, he pointed the top of his beer bottle at her as he said, "No." Then, he pushed himself upright and started to walk toward the connected living room. "You're up to something again, and the answer is no."

The eldest of the two siblings groaned as she walked over to grab her purse off the small table located just around the corner of the entrance hall. "There's just someone that I really think you should meet, Derek. You'd like him. He's funny, and-"

"Laura, the last time I let you set me up, she turned out to be a stalker." Derek arched a brow slightly and grabbed a notebook off of the coffee table where he set his beer down. "I'd rather not go there again."

"Jennifer was a mistake; but, I didn't know her like I know this guy. He'd really be good for you, Der." Laura seemed to be pouting a little, but the way that she watched Derek put all of his focus on whatever he was writing down made her eventually sigh and give up. For the time being, anyway. "This isn't New York, Derek. It's _Beacon Hills_. You need to get out of this apartment and meet people again." Without another word, Laura turned and left the apartment, locking the door behind her.

Derek sighed heavily, tossing his notebook onto the coffee table before tilting his head back and pinching the bridge of his nose between two of his fingers. He loved his sister; but, sometimes she could be a bit much. He was thankful that she had agreed to share the apartment with him until he could save up for a better place on his own. It was nice being back in his hometown, however, and nicer still to actually know someone. He was sure that his mother was glad that he and Laura no longer lived so far away.

* * *

><p>"Szcęsny, are the potatoes done yet?" questioned Melissa Stilinski as she came into the kitchen of Authenticity, tying an apron around her waist as she went.<p>

Stiles pulled a face at her, hip checking her with a nod to the boiling pot while he continued to work on finishing the salad. "Mama, must you call me that?" he asked with a slight groan to his voice, narrowing his eyes when Melissa simply smirked in response.

"Ah, mijo, it's part of my job." Melissa grinned as she put her focus back onto the potatoes, draining the water in the pot so that she could mash them and add the seasonings that she deemed appropriate.

Stiles was the real cook of the family, but every Sunday, when they closed down the restaurant for their weekly family dinner she or someone else would be in there helping him. It was one of the ways that he found new dishes to add to their ever growing menu. That Sunday they were having a simple baked chicken dinner with a lot of potatoes, vegetables, and salad. There was raspberry lemonade for those that wanted it, and wines for the adults. "Can I have the special juice?" they heard Karolina ask someone out in the dining room, making both Melissa and Stiles chuckle.

Moments later, Erica came waltzing into the room with one of the wine goblets in order to get some sparkling grape juice for Karolina. "Kaja wants to feel adult tonight," she stated as she swept her blonde hair over her shoulder and poured the juice. "Aren't you two finished yet?"

"Lydia's not even here yet, Rica," chuckled Stiles with a shake of his head as he checked on the chicken once again.

"Test," Melissa demanded of Erica, holding a spoonful of the potatoes out for the other woman to try as she walked past.

Erica ate the offered spoonful, and seemed to think about it as she pushed her way out through the swinging kitchen door. "A dash more salt and we've got a winner!" Erica called back over her shoulder for Melissa to hear.

By the time the blonde got back to the dining room with Karolina's juice, Lydia and Laura came in, their fingers linked between them as they talked quietly amongst themselves. The moment they walked in, everyone called greetings toward the couple and Laura let go of Lydia's hand so that the redhead could pick up Karolina when the little one came rushing over to her for a hug. "Auntie Lydia!" Karolina said with a bright smile, giggling when Lydia complimented her on her dress. She then was passed off to Laura for a hug, and began asking Laura all about working with her grandpa on the police force. Laura was one of John's favorite deputies.

"Well, just yesterday..." Laura started telling a new story to Karolina as the two of them sat down at the table, Karolina wiggling in her seat excitedly as the deputy spoke.

"Dinner's ready!" Stiles said with a smile of his own as he and Melissa came into the room with a few serving dishes to add to the middle of the table. Melissa beamed a smile when John kissed her cheek before the sheriff went to help the two carry in the rest of the serving dishes.

All talking overlapped and mingled together as the large make-shift family sat around the tables that were all pushed together in the middle of the room. Stiles could not keep from smiling smally as he took a drink of his wine, glancing over everyone's smiling, happy faces. "I tried to get that brother of mine to join us," Laura told John as she handed the plate of rolls to the man. "He declined, again."

"Maybe next time Derek will join us," replied John with a slight nod, passing on the plate to Melissa, who sat on his other side. "It would be nice to see that kid again."

"Ah, you know him. Anti-social as ever." Laura chuckled a little, while Lydia rolled her eyes and mumbled something about him needing to get out more.

"Derek?" questioned Karolina as she took the buttered roll that Stiles offered to her, tilting her head to the side slightly before wiggling away when Stiles tried to wipe some gravy off her chin. "Daddy," she said with a giggle, ducking away when he tickled her.

"Your teacher, Derek... Mr. Hale is Laura's brother," Lydia explained to Karolina, whose jaw dropped a little at the information, "and my best friend."

Karolina then tugged on Stiles' shirt sleeve in order to make him turn to her instead of continuing to listen to Allison talk about the drapes that she had picked out for the house she and Jackson were finally moving into soon. "Daddy, did you know that?" Karolina asked in awe. She liked her teacher a lot and was surprised that people she had known her whole life knew the man she had only met recently.

"Hmm? Know what?" replied Stiles, his brow furrowing as he looked from his daughter to Laura and Lydia.

"Derek's my brother," Laura answered with a slight chuckle and a smile.

Stiles' eyes widened slightly in surprise at the information. Somehow, he had never quite put two and two together. He knew Laura was a Hale; but, he had not really thought about how all the Hales in Beacon Hills were related (unlike some families like Smith and Jones). "Br- Right, no. I should have figured that out. That's cool. You should definitely get him to join us sometime. We've always got room for one more, and he's easily become Kaja's favorite teacher _ever_."

Karolina nodded rapidly with a bright grin before she launched into a story about everything that Mr. Hale had said they would be doing that year, and how when they had to take turns reading out loud Mr. Hale would even read some too. By the end of dinner, everyone had gotten to hear all about Karolina's favorite part of the fourth grade was so far; her teacher because he was amazing.

After dessert was served, and Karolina was sent to finish working on her homework at one of the empty tables in the room while the adults were picking up, Melissa seemed to remember something as she stopped and said, "Oh!" Everyone turned their attention to her then, waiting to see what it was that she had to say as she put her focus on Allison. "What was the news, sweetheart?"

Jackson started smiling widely then, reaching over to take Allison's hand as they shared one of those loving looks that always made Stiles roll his eyes and grumble about them being a Halmark card, something that had happened starting in high school. That day was no exception. "Well, everyone knows that Allison and I are moving into our house soon," Jackson said, smiling over at Allison again.

"Are you going to tell us the news or let us die of old age?" questioned Chris, Allison's father with a chuckle as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Allison rolled her eyes fondly at her father with a slight shake of her head and a smile. "Daddy," she said as she tucked her hair behind an ear. "It looks like we've got amazing timing with moving because... I'm pregnant!"

The eruption of noise in the room was enough to make Karolina look up from her school work as everyone rushed to Allison to congratulate her and Jackson, giving hugs to both of them. Chris pressed a kiss to his daughter's forehead, making her and Jackson promise he'd be one of the first options for babysitting duties. Erica and Lydia both volunteered to help with the nursery while Isaac and Boyd gave simple yet heartfelt congratulations. John and Stiles each hugged the couple tightly; and, when Karolina figured out what was going on, she pressed her ear to Allison's stomach and said, "I don't hear a baby in there."

Everyone chuckled at her words while Allison toyed with the blonde girl's hair idly as she knelt down and said, "The baby's still too little to hear; but, when it's bigger, I'll let you listen."

Karolina beamed up at Allison and thanked her with a hug before falling into a million questions about babies that resulted in Jackson leading her back over to Stiles and saying, "I think we should leave the rest of these questions for you, Dad."

Stiles groaned and ran a hand through his hair, shoving at Jackson's shoulder with a smile and a laugh. "Soon it'll be your turn, _Dad_," countered Stiles with a smirk before he smiled at his daughter. "Wanna go get your coat and backpack so we can head home, Kaja?"

"Okay, Daddy!" she replied, smiling before she practically skipped off to go get her things.

All-in-all, Stiles decided it had been a great evening when he finally locked up the restaurant after everyone had left to head to their respective homes and he took his daughter's hand in his own so that they could walk the few blocks down the street to their apartment.

* * *

><p>"Whatcha working on?" Laura asked Derek as she walked into their apartment and tugged off her jacket. She rolled her eyes with a fond smile when she received a mumbled response from Derek. Then, she made her way over to the couch and sat down next to him, resting her head on the back of the couch as she turned her attention onto her brother. "So, Stiles says that you really should join us next week."<p>

Laura smirked when Derek's pen jerked across the page enough to leave a long black line and his gaze lifted to where his sister was. "What?" Derek replied, his brow furrowing a little as Laura's grin grew.

She nodded as she stretched over-exaggeratedly, attempting to get more comfortable where she sat. "Mmhmm. Got to hear all about how you are such an _amazing_ teacher from Karolina, and Stiles says there's definitely room for his little girl's favorite teacher on Sunday night." Laura could not keep from laughing when Derek continued to look at her as if she had grown a second head. She then reached up to ruffle Derek's hair despite his protests. "If I had known the cute parent you talked about the other day was _Stiles_ I would have made you show up."

"Wh-? Who said it's Stiles?" Derek finally found his voice as he set aside his notebook and crossed his arms over his chest, while Laura simply stood up and smirked once again.

"Why, you did baby brother, when you reacted like you did when I said that Stiles wanted you to be at dinner." Laura reached out to pat the side of Derek's face twice before she then walked to the back of the apartment where her bedroom was. Maybe, just maybe, she thought as she got ready to take a shower, she would no longer have to play match-maker for her brother.

* * *

><p>Stiles reclined next to his daughter in her bed, his arm around her as he held the book with both hands so that they could both read the words as he spoke them. Karolina smiled sleepily as she snuggled into her father's side, trying her best to keep her eyes open even as Stiles stopped reading to press a kiss to the top of your head. "It's time for sleep, Princess," Stiles said quietly. Karolina gave a muffled sort of protest, which only made Stiles chuckle a little as he marked the page in their book. He then carefully moved his arm from around his daughter, standing up to cover her up with a soft promise of her turn to read the next night. "Sleep well, baby."<p>

Once he was sure that Karolina wasn't going to wake back up, Stiles turned off her bedside light and then made his way to the hall. He closed the door behind him, leaving it open a crack, and went into the living room. Stiles sighed heavily as he dropped down to sit on the couch. He had no idea what to do with himself once Karolina was asleep. He did not really watch television, and he had read all the books in the apartment. He was caught up on all the cleaning. It was in those few hours of quiet alone time that Stiles realized just how alone he really was. He was typically too busy for it to bother him, but that night, it was a twinge he could not get rid of.

Stiles worried at his lower lip as he sat there, picking at his nails for several long moments before he forced himself to get up and take a shower if only to have something to do while anxiously waiting for morning.


	3. Chapter 3

Stiles smiled softly to himself as he ran a brush through Karolina's blonde waves. She wanted her hair in a braid that morning. Stiles, for all his uncoordination, had gotten quite good at braiding hair over the previous few years. Of course, he had plenty of help from Allison and Lydia at first, but that was all in the details. Karolina was contented to sit there, singing to herself as her daddy did her hair. "Will Erica make us breakfast this morning?" Karolina asked when Stiles was about half-way finished with her hair.

"Nope," answered Stiles with a slight shake of his head as he finished off the braid with Karolina's favorite red hair tie. "Erica has the day off. She and Boyd are out house hunting today. Isaac's in the kitchen this morning."

"Isaac!" Karolina could not keep the bright smile off of her face at that news. She loved Erica sure enough, but Isaac was probably one of her favorites. He was so sweet and soft-spoken like she was, when she was with new people. They bonded over books and kittens. It was their thing; and, they almost had Scott convinced to adopt another kitten so the first would not get lonely.

"Alright, Kaja, finished. Go brush your teeth so we can go." Stiles patted the top of his daughter's head before she hopped off of the stool she had been sitting on so that she could go do that. "You got your homework done?"

Stiles smiled faintly to himself as he listened to his daughter call back in the affirmative as he replaced the stool at the kitchen island. He had known that she had finished it already; but, that was a subtle way of reminding her to _grab_ the simple color by number sheet that she had brought home. Stiles continued to tidy up the apartment as Karolina finished getting ready; and, by the time she was, Stiles knew that they had only a short while to eat breakfast together before he had to run her up to the school. "Speedy breakfast this morning, Princess," Stiles said as they left the apartment and he locked up behind them. "Otherwise, you'll be late!"

The look of absolute horror on Karolina's face at that statement made Stiles wish that he had a camera to capture it. He chuckled softly as she took his hand and pulled on it as she said, "C'mon, Daddy, let's go!"

Breakfast that morning was a simple one, but Stiles made sure to compliment Isaac on it, causing the curly-haired young man to blush profusely as he ducked back into the kitchen, stating that he had food to watch. Stiles could not keep from smiling as he tugged on his jacket so that he and Karolina could head to the school. He was glad that Scott had found Isaac; they were good for one another, almost too cute sometimes, but that was okay.

Once at the school, Stiles parked the car and unlocked the doors while Karolina unbuckled her seat belt. "Isaac's going to pick you up this evening, okay?" Stiles said as watched her grab her backpack off the floor. "I've got a party coming in that I can't step away from, but I'll see you when I get home."

"Isaac's gonna stay over for a while?" Karolina asked excitedly. She very much enjoyed the days that she got to spend time with one of her aunts or uncles. She enjoyed afternoons in the kitchen with her daddy even more, but the others were definitely a close second.

Stiles nodded with a smile, turning in his seat to face his daughter more, draping one arm over the steering wheel. "Yep. He promises your favorite movies and snacks, too."

Karolina giggled with a smile, nodding a few times before she pressed a kiss to her father's cheek. "Bye, Daddy!" she exclaimed before opening her door and climbing out of the car.

Stiles watched her as she walked the short distance to the front doors, where she met her teacher. Derek was apparently watching the hallway that morning, and was all smiles as he greeted Karolina. He took a drink from the coffee cup in his hand as she went inside, looking forward to where Stiles was still sitting. Their locked gazes caused Stiles to almost jerk forward again to face away and actually drive away instead of sitting there staring like a weirdo. He was just glad that at that distance, there was no way the teacher would have noticed his blush.

He did not notice that as he drove away, Lydia came up to Derek's side and stole his cup of coffee only to take a drink before handing it back. "Don't you just hate Monday mornings?" she said with a slight grumble. She would much rather be back at her apartment, where she'd left a sleeping deputy after Laura showed up half-way through the night as she did on those nights when sleep was a little more difficult.

"They'd be better if you weren't actively stealing my coffee," commented Derek, lifting an eyebrow slightly before he took another sip. He then smiled and welcomed in another student that was just dropped off, Lydia smiling at the kid from her class.

"Yes, well, I didn't make any this morning." Lydia frowned a little at that. She had not made any, as she had not wanted to risk possibly waking Laura up. Laura was not needed at work until the afternoon, so Lydia had wanted her to be able to sleep for as long as possible.

"I'll buy you some at lunch."

Lydia smiled then, turning to face Derek with an honest, bright smile. "Now I remember why you're my best friend." Lydia then patted Derek on his shoulder before she started to walk back inside, only to pause after one step, looking back at him. "Oh, by the way. Stiles isn't seeing anyone, and he's most _definitely _interested. You're welcome." Lydia flashed one of her terrifyingly charming smiles then, and continued into the building, ignoring Derek's flabbergasted expression with a toss of her hair.

* * *

><p>"I promised Laura we'd pick her up something," Lydia explained as she pushed her way in through the front door at <em>Authenticity<em>. The dining room was busy, almost packed; but, most of the noise seemed to be coming from the private room off to the left side. There was someone Lydia did not know manning the bar, and Allison was flitting around the main room fulfilling her duty as front of house manager by making sure that everything was going smoothly. Scott was waiting that evening, specifically for the private party; and, Lydia was sure she had seen Jackson disappear into the back.

"I've never been here," stated Derek as he put his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. He was not sure why Lydia insisted on them going there to get Laura some dinner, especially with how crowded the place seemed. One thing was sure, though, the food smelled wonderful.

Lydia offered no response, just gestured for Derek to follow her as she crossed the dining room to the opening that lead to the hallway which contained doors to the kitchen, bathrooms, break room, and office. She turned to the first door on her left, the kitchen, and led Derek inside. It was busy in there, lots of movement and slightly raised voices to be heard over the food cooking. Derek barely managed to step out of the way before being knocked with one of the trays that Jackson balanced and took out to the private room. "Where are my enchiladas, rice, no beans?" Derek heard a familiar voice call over the din of the kitchen, pulling his attention to where Stiles Stilinski stood dishing out a meal onto one of several plates sitting on one of the counters. His face was slightly red from the heat of the kitchen, and the sleeves of his white shirt were pushed up past his elbows in a fruitless effort to keep cool.

Derek crossed his arms over his chest, and forced his gaze over to Lydia as she cleared her throat and said, "Hey, Stilinski!"

Stiles looked over his shoulder to Lydia and smiled at her. "Hiya, Lyds," he said, nodding slightly at Derek in greeting. "Mr. Hale."

"Derek," the teacher corrected yet again, smiling slightly when Stiles laughed, mostly at himself.

"Right. Derek." Stiles nodded a little and placed the plates he was working on into the window that opened up into the bar before hitting the bell on the counter. He then turned to face the two of them, wiping his hands off on the front of the apron that was tied around his waist. "I'm guessing you two are here for Laura?"

Lydia nodded as she tucked her hair behind her ear. "Yes, please. She requests one of the Baja burgers," Lydia stated. "And don't skimp on the curly fries." She added the last statement with a wink.

Stiles chuckled as he crossed the room to the flat-top, nudging the line cook to another area with a quiet direction. "Never. That's sacrilege," Stiles replied to Lydia as he got to work on making a burger for Laura to her liking. "What about you two? Can I get you anything?"

"That depends." Lydia pursed her lips slightly with a faint hum as she glanced over to the desserts station, eying the night's options.

Not even looking at her, Stiles smirked slightly to himself, knowing what she was looking for. "Your favorite _is_ over there tonight, my queen."

"Then, yes. We'll have three of those," Lydia insisted, leaving Derek no room to argue.

"Sweet action!" Stiles grinned yet again as he continued working, and offered no more words as he finished the order to add to one of the Styrofoam go-boxes used to house any orders placed to go. It was more common around the lunch hour, but they often had people leave with leftovers, too. Stiles handed the large box with Laura's dinner to Lydia, and the three small boxes containing one slice of cake each to Derek. If his fingers brushed against the other man's hand a bit too much to be subtle, then it was totally an accident; at least, that was what Stiles told himself. "Here ya go."

"How much?" Derek asked after a second, clearing his throat a little in order to actually get the words out.

Stiles shook his head, holding his hands up with a smile. "Nope. On me. You guys go. Give Laura a hug for me, would ya, Lyds?"

"Of course," replied Lydia as she stepped forward to give Stiles as good of a one-armed hug as she could manage with Laura's food in her other arm, smiling when he kissed her cheek. "Have fun with this rush, Stiles."

"Always."

Derek waved slightly, and Stiles smiled in return with a nod of his head, before the two of them left the kitchen and made their way back through the busy restaurant. Derek had not seen a small town restaurant do that well in ages; it was kind of nice, and not just because it was Stiles' place. There were too many corporation chains everywhere. Of course, Stiles may be the reason he would have to find an excuse to go back to _Authenticity_, not that he was dumb enough to even think of mentioning that to Lydia.

With the sheriff's station being only a few blocks away, Lydia suggested they simply walk the food down to Laura instead of driving. It was a waste of gas, after all. Derek did not mind. He enjoyed the warm night air and the few stars that could be seen in the sky within city limits. They were only a block away from the restaurant when Lydia started to say, "So..."

"No," Derek interrupted with a shake of his head, shifting his careful grip on the cartons in his hands. "We're not talking about it; I'm not talking about it. Different subject."

"I was just going to say that it's awfully warm for this time of year." Lydia flashed Derek one of her most innocent smiles, but Derek narrowed his eyes at her, not buying it for a moment. "And maybe that I agree with your sister; it's time to start dating again. Plus, you like him. I could tell."

"I don't _like_ him. I don't even _know_ him. He's just another parent," Derek argued, keeping his gaze fixed firmly ahead of him.

Lydia rolled her eyes at that. "You're attracted to him, at least; and, you _could _know him, if you'd give yourself the chance to." She fixed Derek with a pointed look, stopping outside the front door to the sheriff's station. She said nothing else on the subject, however, and opened the door so that they could go inside.

Laura all but groaned with appreciation when she saw Derek and Lydia approaching her desk with the familiar white cartons that she knew so well. "Tell Stiles that he is a_ godsend_," Laura said as she took the carton from Lydia, pressing a quick kiss to her girlfriend's lips. "Hey, you."

"Hi," replied Lydia with a bright smile as she sat down on the edge of Laura's desk, grabbing one of the smaller cartons from Derek to hand to Laura as well. "He sends cake and hugs as well."

"If I didn't love you so much, I'd leave you for his cooking," Laura said in all seriousness as she opened the container to grab one of the curly fries. Lydia rolled her eyes with a fond shake of her head at her girlfriend before glancing over to Derek. "We'd love to stay and chat, but I'm stealing your brother for the night. We've got to make some plans."

Laura's eyes narrowed as she took a bite of her burger, gaze flicking between the other two. Only after wiping her mouth with a napkin did she say, "You better _not_ be talking about..."

Lydia cut her off with a quick kiss and a smile before hopping off the desk. "I'll see you later!" Lydia called, ignoring Laura's protests as she led Derek back out of the station. They both knew that Laura hated when they tag-teamed ideas for her birthday, which was drawing very near. It was their favorite thing to do, if only to irritate Laura. Though, they all knew she secretly loved it, because it was always something thoughtful from the two people who meant the most to her.

Derek and Lydia made their way back to Lydia's car, neither one really saying anything. The drive to her apartment was rather quiet as well, and once they got there, Derek took a shower and changed into some of the clothes he left there before Lydia showered and changed as well. Once they were both comfortable, they sat on her couch and munched on the slices of cake they had while going over what they already had planned for Laura's birthday that year. "Stiles is a really good cook," Lydia said as she sat the empty container aside, quickly tying her hair back with an elastic band. "Maybe we could get him to do the cake. I'm sure he would love to."

"Yeah, that's fine," replied Derek with a slight shrug. He knew what Lydia was doing; he _knew _she was purposely bringing up the other man. She and Laura were alike in many ways, and trying to subtly force his thinking to one way was one of the many traits they had in common. Derek knew they meant well, but he was still not sure that _he _was ready to actually try dating again. After Jennifer... well, Derek was still a bit shaken up. For that reason, he refused to even draw attention to the fact that he knew what Lydia was doing. He did not want to talk about it. Besides, they were there to plan something for Laura, not for him.

* * *

><p>By the time Stiles had <em>Authenticity <em>cleaned up and ready for the next day, he was exhausted and felt ready to drop. Isaac smiled when Stiles came into the apartment and the two of them talked quietly for a few minutes before Isaac left to head to the apartment he shared with Scott. Karolina was already asleep, but Stiles stopped to check on her anyway. He smiled faintly in the doorway when he saw her sleeping well in her bed. He walked in quietly and ducked down enough to press a kiss to her forehead. "Sleep well, Princess," he whispered before straightening up, and walking back toward the door.

He paused only for a moment when he heard his daughter mumble, "Love you, too, Daddy." He glanced over at her with a smile as she turned over on her bed to get more comfortable, settling right back into sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

"What're we watching tonight, Princess?" Stiles asked as he sat down on the couch in the living room next to his daughter, who was sitting up near the edge and using a collapsible tray to hold her plate and drink.

"Chef Robert," replied Karolina with a nod before she focused on her food since it was just another commercial.

Stiles chuckled with a slight shake of his head. He should have guessed. They both had the television on Food Network a lot, but Chef Robert was Karolina's favorite. She loved the show _Restaurant Impossible_, especially the decorating part of it. Several times she had conspired with Lydia afterward in possibly redecorating Authenticity. Stiles had always said that as long as The Wall stayed, he did not care about the rest of it. No remodeling had been done to that date, however.

After they finished eating, the two of them watched a few more things on Food Network, Karolina reclining back against her father with a small smile. "Alright, Princess," Stiles said with a slight groan as he leaned forward to grab the remote off of the table. "Time to go take a bath."

"Okay!" Karolina nodded with a smile before she rushed off to the bathroom to do just that. She was big enough that she no longer needed help; so, Stiles stuck out in the living room and kitchen, doing some cleaning.

He turned on the radio to have some music on as he cleaned, leaving it quiet enough to be able to hear his daughter should she need him. Stiles hummed along with the music as he cleaned, a small smile on his face the entire time. It was a good night; he enjoyed quiet nights at home with his daughter where he did not have to worry about the restaurant or anything. Allison and Jackson were perfectly capable of running it on those nights.

Several minutes later, Karolina came practically skipping back out from the bathroom, clean and in her favorite pair of sleep clothes. "Can I help?" she asked.

Stiles nodded with a smile before nodding her toward the sink. "Grab a stool, Kaja," he instructed, beginning to run some water in the sink so that they could wash some of the dishes by hand together. "I'll get up early and make those cookies for you in the morning."

"Thanks, Daddy!"

When Karolina woke up to get ready for school the next morning, Stiles was in the kitchen, putting saran-wrap on the last plate of cookies for them to take into the school that day. One of Karolina's classmates had a birthday that day, and the girl's mother had asked Stiles to make something for the class. Of course, Stiles had agreed.

"Morning, Princess," Stiles said with a tired smile in his daughter's direction that grew a little as she ran over and threw her arms around his waist in a hug. "Go get dressed, I'll have breakfast ready when you get out."

"Okay, Daddy!" replied Karolina, nodding a few times before she went back to her bedroom to pick out her outfit to the day. Allison and Lydia had taken her shopping for all of her back to school clothes, and of course Lydia had shown her all sorts of cute ways to put them together.

While Karolina was getting dressed, Stiles was making breakfast for them; waffles, eggs, and bacon that morning with some orange juice. By the time Karolina had picked out an outfit and brushed her hair, Stiles was setting her plate. "Kaja, breakfast's ready!" he called, turning to add some scrambled eggs to his own plate.

The two of them sat at the breakfast bar there in the kitchen, talking and laughing as they ate until it was time for Karolina to finish getting ready to go. "Don't forget your backpack!" Stiles reminded her as he put their plates and forks into the sink.

"I'm ready, Daddy," Karolina insisted with a nod of her head once she returned to the living room with her backpack on her shoulders.

"Alright, then. Let's go!"

Their drive to the school was filled with them both singing along with the radio, Stiles tapping his fingers against the steering wheel the entire time while Karolina practically danced in her seat. It was a beautiful morning, and Stiles could see where the leaves were already beginning to change. It made Karolina all excited because it meant that they were that much closer to Halloween, her favorite holiday.

At the school, Stiles parked the car in the parking lot and got out with his daughter, but he stopped at the back doors to the car in order to get the two plates of cookies out of the backseat. "Can I carry one?" Karolina asked with a bright smile.

"Sure, Princess!" replied Stiles with a smile of his own before handing off one of the plates to his daughter.

They talked about how pretty it was outside that day as they walked into the building and down the hallway to Karolina's classroom, where there were already a few students, and Mr. Hale waiting for the day to begin. "Morning, Mr. Hale!" Karolina said once they were in the room. "Daddy and I brought cookies."

Derek chuckled softly with a smile as he leaned back against his desk, crossing his arms over his chest, watching as the two set the plates down on the circle table over near the windows. "I can see that. Thank you, Stiles and Karolina," the teacher stated, nodding a little.

"It was no problem," replied Stiles with a slight wave of his hand. "I heard tell that it was someone's birthday today." Stiles smiled over at Mia, the little girl whose birthday it was. "Happy birthday, Mia." She smiled brightly in response, thanking Mr. Stilinski. "You guys have a good day, alright? I'll see you tonight, Princess." Stiles smiled once again as Karolina wrapped her arms around her father's waist to give him another hug. As Stiles left the classroom, he waved at Derek with another smile before actually watching where he was walking.

Stiles did not leave the school just yet, however. He just crossed the hallway to Lydia's classroom, where she was at one of her students' desks, talking to them about the coloring page they were working on. Stiles knocked on the door frame, making Lydia look up only to smile when she saw who it was. "Stiles!" the red-headed teacher said as she walked over to him and pressed a kiss to his cheek in greeting. "What're you doing here?"

"Dropped some cookies off for Kaja's class," replied Stiles with a nod. "Figured I'd stop in and say 'hello'."

"Good. I'd have been very disappointed if you didn't." Lydia narrowed her eyes a little at Stiles, though she remained smiling. "Laura can't make it to dinner on Sunday. She's got to work."

"That sucks. We'll have to bring her some food, then. She can't miss out!"

Lydia nodded in agreement, crossing her arms over her chest with a sly smile. "I might be able to convince her little brother to show up, though." Lydia raised a brow slightly at that, though Stiles just lifted his brow slightly in return.

"Cool. There's always room for one more." Stiles nodded a little then and reached up with one hand, absently ruffling his hair. "I should head out, take over for the lunch shift. I'll see you later."

Lydia rolled her eyes fondly and shook her head with a smile as she turned back to her classroom and walked over to the whiteboard to finish preparing for the start of the morning's lesson.

* * *

><p>That evening, just before the start of the dinner rush, Stiles was at the front of the house, talking to a few of his regular customers when he watched Laura and Derek come walking in. "Excuse me," Stiles said with a smile to the people he had been checking on, before walking over to the Hale siblings. "Hi, guys. Would you like a table?"<p>

"Please," replied Laura with a nod, following Stiles when he started to lead them over to one of the better tables.

"Lydia joining you tonight?"

Stiles asked the question as he placed a few menus on the table, and Laura shook her head in answer. "She's helping Allison and Jackson with nursery ideas."

"Ah, well. I'm sure she'll enjoy that. So, sweet tea for you, Miss Laura, and, Derek...?"

"Oh, uh, water's fine," Derek replied with a nod and a small smile.

Stiles smiled in return and nodded his own head before stating that he would be back. Laura laced her fingers together and crossed her arms over the table. "So, Derek..." she started to say, only to be cut off with a brow raise and a headshake from Derek.

"No, Laura," he said, shaking his head again. "You and Lydia need to stop. If anything's going to happen, it'll happen on its own, not because you're pushing it."

Laura pursed her lips a moment as she studied her brother while he looked over the menu. "How did you even know what I was going to say?"

Derek chuckled at that, raising his brow a little as he looked up at her. "You're my big sister. I know you."

Stiles returned to the table then, placing a glass of sweet tea with a lemon wedge on it in front of Laura and a glass of water in front of Derek. "Know what we're getting tonight?" he asked with a smile, glancing between the Hale siblings.

"You know what," Laura said as she reached over and grabbed Derek's menu from him, while picking up hers with the other hand. "Derek's never been here before. Surprise us."

Laura flashed a bright smile in Stiles' direction, and he chuckled as he took the menus. "Alright, then. I'll make sure it's good. We don't want this being the last time Derek comes in." Stiles smiled once again and then turned to head back to the kitchen area.

The elder Hale sibling smirked as she took a drink of her tea. "He likes you," is all she said, though she wanted to say more. She chuckled when Derek had no response, his gaze turning to her from where he'd been watching Stiles walk away. "You should come to family dinner on Friday. Maybe you'll get that chance to get to know him if you actually try."

"Laura..." was all Derek said in reply, tone heeding a slight warning, though his sister just chuckled.

"That wasn't a 'no'." Laura smirked again, settling down low in her chair as she watched her brother as he struggled to come up with some sort of witty retort. When he gave up with a heavy sigh, Laura just laughed and smiled as she sat up fully in her chair again.

* * *

><p>The next day at school, Derek frowned slightly when Karolina Stilinski was not present among his students. It was the first time she had missed all year, and it was not until noon that the school secretary came by with a note saying that Stiles had called in to tell them that Karolina was ill. Derek frowned slightly once again but thanked the secretary. While the students were at recess, Derek took a few minutes to gather what Karolina's homework would be.<p>

It was near the end of the day when there was a knock on the door, making Derek look up from where he was, crouched next to one of his students' desk to help with the math page they were working on. "Can I help you?" Derek asked the young woman with long, blonde hair that was styled in curls and bright red lipstick that only enhanced the slight smirk on her face.

"Yes, hi, I'm Erica Reyes," the blonde said as she stepped into the room, extending a hand out toward Derek while he stood up straight. "I'm here to grab Karolina's homework."

"Oh, yes. Right. Erica." Derek nodded with a faint smile as he shook her hand, lasting only a second before he let go and moved toward the desk. He recognized her name from the list that Stiles had of acceptable adults to pick Karolina up from school when he could not. He was also sure he had heard Lydia and Laura talking about the blonde before. "Here it is. Let her know we all hope she feels better soon."

Erica pursed her lips a little as she gave Derek a once over, taking the small pile of papers and workbooks that Karolina would need. "I'll be sure to do that, Mr. Hale." Erica flashed Derek a bright smile then, wiggling the fingers of her free hand in a wave before she left the classroom in a swift stride that reminded Derek much of the fiery red-headed teacher across the hallway.

"Alright, guys," Derek said as he turned back to face his class, absentmindedly ruffling his hair with one hand. "Let's get ready for art, yeah?"

The rest of Derek's day was rather uneventful until he found himself making a late run to the store after Laura asked him to go pick up some cold medicine. She was starting to come down with something, and the sniffling was beginning to annoy her. Derek, being the good brother he was, suppressed an urge to roll his eyes as he grabbed his jacket and left their shared apartment. It was there at the store that Derek found himself nearly colliding with none other than Stiles Stilinski.

He was dressed in blue and purple plaid sleep pants that matched the ones that Karolina wore, along with a gray henley tee; and, Derek had to take a second to actually process the fact that they both looked completely disheveled. Karolina more so than Stiles. Her face was overly pale though her cheeks were pink, and she had her arms wrapped firmly around her father's waist as they shuffled along. "Geeze, sorry," Stiles breathed out when he realized that he almost ran into someone. He smiled, though when Derek reached out a hand to steady him and he realized who it was. "Oh, hi, Derek."

"You okay?" questioned Derek as he let go of Stiles' arm, smiling warmly in response.

"Yeah, I'm good. Just wasn't watching where I was going. Trying to get some cold medicine for Kaja." Stiles nodded a little, idly running his hand over Karolina's back as she pressed in closer to his side.

Derek nodded a little with a slight laugh. "Yeah, I'm here to get some for Laura."

"She's sick, too?" questioned Karolina quietly, her voice sounding stuffy and slightly hoarse. "You should make her chicken soup. Daddy makes it for me, and it makes me feel a little better."

Both Stiles and Derek chuckled at her helpful suggestion, and Derek nodded once with a smile. "I might just have to do that. Thank you for the advice, Karolina."

"Tell Laura I hope she feels better," Stiles stated with a nod before tilting his head backward toward where the registers were. "We should probably get out of here. I need to get this little one back to bed. Thank you for gathering her homework."

"It's not a problem," replied Derek, idly waving one of his hands. "Feel better, Karolina, and we'll see you back in class soon."

"M'kay," she mumbled in response, squeezing her arms around Stiles' waist absentmindedly.

With a smile and a nod, Stiles waved and then started to lead his daughter over to where the registers were so that they could pay for the cold medicine and some tissues. It was going to be a long night, but with a glance over his shoulder to where Derek was struggling to pick out the right kind of medication, Stiles could not help his smile. As they started toward the door, Stiles called out to the teacher, "The one on your right. That's the one you want." Stiles grinned again when Derek shot him a smile in thanks, nodding a little at the help.


	5. Chapter 5

"I'm not so sure this is a good idea," Derek commented as he tied on his shoes in the living room of the apartment that he shared with his sister. It was late Sunday afternoon, and according to Lydia, everyone was beginning to gather over at _Authenticity_. They would miss out on some of the best conversation if they showed up late, or so Lydia insisted.

Lydia's brow rose as she checked her lipstick in a compact, not even sparing her friend a glance. "Those shoes with that shirt? You're right. Terrible idea," she replied, nodding a little with a faint smirk as Derek glared at her in response. "Oh, come _on_, Derek. It won't kill you to go! Everyone would love for you to join us. You're not crashing. You're _invited_."

Derek sighed softly, dropping his foot from where it was propped up on the coffee table back onto the floor. He was not entirely sure how he ended up getting himself talked into going (but, then he remembered running into Stiles on Friday downtown and being asked if he was going to be there on Sunday, to which he answered 'yes' without thinking), but it was probably much too late to back out if the look on Lydia's face was anything to go by. So, Derek decided it was better to not even attempt to argue with Lydia as he got up from the couch. The only good thing about the evening, he guessed as he grabbed his jacket and they made their way to the front door, was that Laura would not be there to tease him the entire night. It did suck that they could not get her out of working that night. It was either her or the Sheriff, and Laura had insisted that he be at the family dinner.

Several minutes later, Derek was heading up the walkway to the front door of _Authenticity_, reading a sign in the door that stated the place was closed and that everyone should have a great Sunday. Behind the glass door, Derek could catch glimpses of Karolina running around with a bright grin on her face as Boyd play-chased after her around the dining room. "Come on, Derek," Lydia insisted, grabbing Derek's arm and pulling him into the restaurant after her.

"Aunt Lydia!" Karolina exclaimed with a bright smile when she caught sight of the red-head, dashing across the room to nearly throw herself at the teacher with a hug.

Lydia let go of Derek's arm to hug her gently and play with her curled hair, avoiding the flower crown that sat on the top of her head. "You look beautiful, Kaja! Who helped you with your hair today?" she asked, smiling softly at the little girl.

"Gramma and Uncle Scott!" The smile on Karolina's face only seemed to grow when she noticed Derek standing near the door. "Mr. Hale! You came!"

"Yeah, well, I couldn't pass up the invitation," replied Derek with a nod and a smile. "Glad to see you're feeling better again."

"Oh, yes. I can actually breathe today." Karolina smiled brightly once again before tugging on Lydia's hand, insisting that she had to show her aunt something that she and Erica had done.

John Stilinski walked over to the young teacher then, clapping the man on the shoulder with a grin. "Welcome to the madhouse," John stated with a laugh, smiling when someone shouted an indignant _hey!_ across the room. "Mel and Stiles are in the kitchen. Mind checking in on them? We leave them alone too long and dangerous things have been known to happen."

"Uh, yeah, sure, okay," replied Derek with a nod before making his way back over to where the door to the kitchen was, glancing over to watch the sheriff as he joined several others in coloring with Karolina. Derek smiled a little to himself and looked forward again as he entered the kitchen.

Almost immediately, he found himself blinking several times in surprise as there was suddenly a hand in front of his face holding onto a small piece of what appeared to be bread. "Try this. Is it too sweet?" Stiles asked, using his other hand to rearrange something on a plate that Derek could not quite see.

"Uh..." the teacher said dumbly, making Stiles look over to see who he was speaking to, eyes widening slightly in surprise.

"Shit, sorry. I thought you were Scott." Stiles dropped his hand as a smile spread across his face, getting past the initial shock that it was not his best friend that had come into the room. "You came. I'm glad. I wasn't sure... There's always more than enough, though, so..."

Stiles smiled again with a nod, opening his mouth to say something else only to stop when Melissa walked over and too the piece of bread from him to try for herself. She nodded resolutely, speaking around the bit in her mouth as she said, "It's good, Szczęsny; not too sweet this time."

"Mama," he groaned, running a hand over his face with a slight wince at the sound of his first name. Melissa simply beamed at him in response, pressing a kiss to her step-son's cheek before heading out of the kitchen stating she would be back when she got some wine. "Want to help? I'm almost done."

"Uh, yeah, sure. What're you making?" Derek replied, nodding as he stepped farther to the kitchen.

Stiles gestured to the plate he had been working at moments before as he stepped away from it, and said, "That's paska bread; it's a sweet bread. Kaja loves it, so..." He spoke as he walked over to the stove, where there were a few things that seemed to be almost finished. "Then, there's Halushki; it's... well, just trust me, it's good even if it doesn't sound it." There were a few other small random dishes for those that did not like what they were serving, including a cheese ravioli that Allison adored.

"I'll take your word on it." Derek nodded a little, his eyes focusing more on Stiles than on the dishes that were cooking. "So... how can I help?"

"Oh! Yes, right. Can you finish putting everything in those four bowls on that counter together?" Stiles nodded absentmindedly, turning off one of the burners and moving the pan onto a different counter while using his other hand to sprinkle some salt across the top. Neither of the men said much after that, finding instead that they rather enjoyed one another's quiet company.

* * *

><p>"I was seventeen when she was born," Stiles told Derek, leaning back against one of the tables at the side of the room while he watched Karolina help John gather the plates to take to the kitchen. Everyone was sitting around talking and laughing, enjoying their time together. There was a nice, calm feeling in the air and Stiles loved it. He was not sure why he was sharing his history with Derek, however; but, it felt like the right time to bring it up. He took a sip of his wine before looking back to Derek. "Her mother didn't want the responsibility, but the moment I held her, that was it. She's had me wrapped around her finger ever since. I couldn't just... <em>let her go<em>. My dad was a big help, gave us a place to stay until I could get one for us and he was the best baby sitter when he could when I was going to school. All of these guys helped when things got rough, and, I mean, it was hard, but... definitely worth it. I can't imagine my life without her."

"Well, she absolutely adores you," commented Derek with a nod, switching his own glass of wine from one hand to the other. "There's no one she talks about more at school."

Stiles could not help but smile at that, the expression only growing as Kaja started talking and laughing excitedly in the kitchen with his father. "Well, maybe so, but you've got me beat at home. You're her favorite teacher _ever_, according to her. She's always talking about things you've done or things you said. She's actually excited about the science fair." Stiles nodded to himself, idly swirling the wine in his glass around once before looking from it to Derek. "Are you going to come back next week?"

Derek glanced over at the others at the question, watching as they all sat around talking and laughing. Lydia was talking excitedly about nursery colors for Allison and Jackson's baby with Melissa. Isaac was leaning against Scott, Scott's arm around his shoulder, though he was talking to Allison about something that he could not quite hear. Allison, Scott, Erica, and Boyd all seemed to be in a friendly debate about something. It was chaotic, but oddly calming and just... nice. He had not felt like an outsider simply sitting there like he had thought they would. He just fit right in to the group, which was definitely unexpected. With a small smile, Derek looked back to Stiles and said, "If you'll have me."

Stiles straightened up slightly, smiling a little more at that as he said, "Of course. You're always welcome here." Stiles seemed to be on the verge of saying something else when he was cut off by the sounds of everyone beginning to get up with comments of needing to get home and long days the next day. Instead, he smiled and finished the last of his wine before holding his other hand out for Derek's glass. "I guess that's the cue of everyone having enough of family bonding this week."

"Daddy, we got all the dishes finished!" Karolina exclaimed as she came rushing over to her father's side, the front of her dress a bit wet from where soap and water had splashed on it.

"Thank you, Princess. Go get your jacket, yeah? We'll head home soon." Stiles nodded as Karolina did before she rushed off to the back office. "I'm glad you joined us today, Mr. Hale."

"Derek," the teacher corrected with a small smile, actually handing his glass over to Stiles, who smiled in return with a nod.

"Derek. I'm glad you joined us today, _Derek_."

Whatever Stiles was going to say next was cut off by Lydia walking over and linking her arm with Derek's as she said, "C'mon, you're my ride home; and, we should take some of this to Laura. Dinner was _perfect_, Stiles, thank you."

"Anytime, Lydia," replied Stiles with a smile, pressing a kiss to Lydia's cheek before stepping back from the two of them. "Have a great evening, guys."

"Bye, Stiles!" Lydia's good-bye drowned out Derek's quiet one, but Stiles smiled at him all the same before heading back to take the wine glasses to the kitchen. Lydia smiled and tugged on Derek's arm with her own, careful of the go-box of food in her hand. "C'mon, Romeo, let's go." Derek rolled his eyes, but offered no complaints as he followed Lydia to the exit, both of them calling their good-byes to everyone else that was gathering jackets and purses (in Allison, Melissa, and Erica's cases). It was when they were almost to Derek's car that Lydia asked, "So, are you glad you came?"

Derek glanced over his shoulder and into the restaurant behind him, smiling a little when he caught sight of Stiles hugging Melissa with a smile as he pulled away and she patted his face while Karolina went around and hugged everyone else before they headed to the door as a group. Derek looked forward again with a nod, smiling a little more as he said, "Yeah, I am."

* * *

><p>"Will Mr. Hale be there next week?" Karolina asked around a yawn as she sat in front of Stiles on the couch, facing one of the arms instead of forward so that he could run a comb through her tangled, wet hair.<p>

"I don't know," replied Stiles with a shake of his head that she could not see. "I hope so." Derek had said that he would, but that did not mean it would always happen. The man could have just been being overly polite, after all. Stiles hoped not, though, finding that he really did enjoy just talking to the guy. It was nice to know someone he could banter with and they both keep smiles on their faces. It had been a long time since he had smiled like he had that night.

"Me, too." Karolina shifted how she was sitting in an attempt to get more comfortable without pulling away from the comb going through her hair, yawning again.

Stiles chuckled and gently squeezed her arm as he sat the comb aside. "There, finished; and, I think it's time for someone to head to bed."

"But I'm not sleepy!" insisted Karolina with a devastated look upon her face, though they were both quite aware the lie in those words.

"Sleepy or not, you've got school tomorrow. So, come on, bedtime." Stiles nodded once and smiled as Karolina got up from the bed with a heavy sigh. "Sleep well, Princess. I love you."

"Daddy, love you more." Karolina's words were quiet as she made her way back toward her bedroom, but they made him smile all the same.

Stiles got up to put away the comb he had been using, then, and continued on to the kitchen to do some quiet cleaning in there, listening to some movie on a quiet volume setting as he worked. All the while, he had a small smile on his face, thinking over the events of the day and finding that it had been a better day than he had expected.


End file.
